A Framework For Human Microbiome Research, Barbara A. Methe, Jacques Izard

Department of Food Science and Technology: Faculty Publications

A variety of microbial communities and their genes (the microbiome) exist throughout the human body, with fundamental roles in human health and disease. The National Institutes of Health (NIH)-funded Human Microbiome Project Consortium has established a population-scale framework to develop metagenomic protocols, resulting in a broad range of quality-controlled resources and data including standardized methods for creating, processing and interpreting distinct types of high-throughput metagenomic data available to the scientific community. Here we present resources from a population of 242 healthy adults sampled at 15 or 18 body sites up to three times, which have generated 5,177 microbial taxonomic profiles …

Harvesting Murine Alveolar Macrophages And Evaluating Cellular Activation Induced By Polyanhydride Nanoparticles, Ana V. Chavez-Santoscoy, Lucas M. Huntimer, Amanda Ramer-Tait, Michael Wannemueler, Balaji Narasimhan

Department of Food Science and Technology: Faculty Publications

Biodegradable nanoparticles have emerged as a versatile platform for the design and implementation of new intranasal vaccines against respiratory infectious diseases. Specifically, polyanhydride nanoparticles composed of the aliphatic sebacic acid (SA), the aromatic 1,6-bis(p -carboxyphenoxy)hexane (CPH), or the amphiphilic 1,8-bis(p-carboxyphenoxy)-3,6-dioxaoctane (CPTEG) display unique bulk and surface erosion kinetics^1,2 and can be exploited to slowly release functional biomolecules (e.g., protein antigens, immunoglobulins, etc.) in vivo^3,4,5. These nanoparticles also possess intrinsic adjuvant activity, making them an excellent choice for a vaccine delivery platform^6,7,8.

In order to elucidate the mechanisms governing the activation of innate …

Analyzing Cellular Internalization Of Nanoparticles And Bacteria By Multi-Spectral Imaging Flow Cytometry, Yashdeep Phanse, Amanda E. Ramer-Tait, Sherree L. Friend, Brenda Carrillo-Conde, Paul Lueth, Carrie J. Oster, Gregory J. Phillips, Balaji Narasimhan, Michael J. Wannemuehler, Bryan H. Bellaire

Department of Food Science and Technology: Faculty Publications

Nanoparticulate systems have emerged as valuable tools in vaccine delivery through their ability to efficiently deliver cargo, including proteins, to antigen presenting cells^1-5. Internalization of nanoparticles (NP) by antigen presenting cells is a critical step in generating an effective immune response to the encapsulated antigen. To determine how changes in nanoparticle formulation impact function, we sought to develop a high throughput, quantitative experimental protocol that was compatible with detecting internalized nanoparticles as well as bacteria. To date, two independent techniques, microscopy and flow cytometry, have been the methods used to study the phagocytosis of nanoparticles. The high throughput …

Exposure To Dietary Selenium And Soy Isoflavones In Utero Provides Greater Protection Against Prostate Cancer Risk Factors In Tramp Mice Than Exposure Beginning At 6 Weeks, Heather Schofield Lindsay

Theses and Dissertations

Prostate cancer is the second most commonly occurring cancer in men in the United States. Generally, an extended period of time is needed for a mutation to develop into a full scale tumor. Because of this long latency period, lifestyle and environmental factors, such as diet, may play an important role in the development and progression of the disease. Diet is one factor that has been implicated in the risk for developing prostate cancer. We previously showed that diets high in soy isoflavones and selenium (Se) decreased androgen receptor expression and expression of androgen regulated genes in healthy rat prostates. …

Purification And Characterization Of Aspergillus Niger Α-L-Rhamnosidase For The Biotransformation Of Naringin To Prunin, Hui Ni, An Feng Xiao, Hui Nong Cai, Feng Chen, Qi You, Yun Zheng Lu

Publications

This study was conducted to increase the bioactivity of litchi pericarp polysaccharides (LPPs) biotransformed by Aspergillus awamori. Comparedtothenon-A. awamori-fermented LPP, the growth effects of A. awamori-fermented LPP on Lactobacillus bulgaricus and Streptococcus thermophilus were four and two times higher after 3 days of fermentation, respectively. Increased 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl radical scavenging activity and DNA protection activity of litchi pericarp polysaccharides were also achieved after A. awamori fermentation. Moreover, the relative content of glucose and arabinose in LPP after fermentation decreased from 58.82% to 22.60% and from 18.82% to 10.09%, respectively, with a concomitant increase in the relative contents of galactose, rhamnose, xylose, …

Seasonality Of Infant Feeding Practices In Three Brazilian Birth Cohorts, David A. González-Chica, Helen Gonçalves, Aydin Nazmi, Iná S. Santos, Aluísio J. D. Barros, Alicia Matijasevich, Cesar G. Victora

Food Science and Nutrition

Background We assessed the influence of season of birth on duration of breastfeeding and other feeding patterns in three population-based birth cohort studies in the city of Pelotas, Southern Brazil.

Methods In 1982, 1993 and 2004, all hospital-born children in the city were enrolled in three cohort studies (n =  5914, 5249 and 4287, respectively). Children and their mothers were periodically visited in the first 2 years of life, to collect information on the duration of breastfeeding and the ages at which different types of foods were introduced on a regular basis. Two independent variables were studied: month of …

An Investigation Of The Bioactivity Of Irish Seaweeds And Potential Applications As Nutraceuticals., Sabrina Cox

Doctoral

The primary goals of this research were to; identify the bioactivity of a range of edible Irish seaweeds, to examine the current technological procedures currently applied with respect to seaweed processing and in light of this information, to examine the potential of incorporating seaweeds into traditional food products in order to enhance their nutraceutical properties. Currently most Irish seaweeds are washed, dried and packaged, with little done to increase consumer appeal or interest and dried seaweed may appear inaccessible and unfamiliar to consumers. Seaweeds possess an excellent nutritional quality, such as high fibre and phytochemical content, low cholesterol and low …

Composition Of The Adult Digestive Tract Bacterial Microbiome Based On Seven Mouth Surfaces, Tonsils, Throat And Stool Samples, Nicola Segata, Susan Kinder Haake, Peter Mannon, Katherine P. Lemon, Levi Waldron, Dirk Gevers, Curtis Huttenhower, Jacques Izard

Department of Food Science and Technology: Faculty Publications

Background: To understand the relationship between our bacterial microbiome and health, it is essential to define the microbiome in the absence of disease. The digestive tract includes diverse habitats and hosts the human body’s greatest bacterial density. We describe the bacterial community composition of ten digestive tract sites from more than 200 normal adults enrolled in the Human Microbiome Project, and metagenomically determined metabolic potentials of four representative sites.

Results: The microbiota of these diverse habitats formed four groups based on similar community compositions: buccal mucosa, keratinized gingiva, hard palate; saliva, tongue, tonsils, throat; sub- and supra-gingival plaques; …

Metabolic Reconstruction For Metagenomic Data And Its Application To The Human Microbiome, Sahar Abubucker, Nicola Segata, Johannes Goll, Alyxandria M. Schubert, Jacques Izard, Brandi L. Cantarel, Beltran Rodriguez-Mueller, Jeremy Zucker, Mathangi Thiagarajan, Bernard Henrissat, Owen White, Scott T. Scott, Barbara Methé, Patrick D. Schloss, Dirk Gever, Makedonka Mitreva, Curtis Huttenhower

Department of Food Science and Technology: Faculty Publications

Microbial communities carry out the majority of the biochemical activity on the planet, and they play integral roles in processes including metabolism and immune homeostasis in the human microbiome. Shotgun sequencing of such communities’ metagenomes provides information complementary to organismal abundances from taxonomic markers, but the resulting data typically comprise short reads from hundreds of different organisms and are at best challenging to assemble comparably to single-organism genomes. Here, we describe an alternative approach to infer the functional and metabolic potential of a microbial community metagenome. We determined the gene families and pathways present or absent within a community, as …

Planning And Designing A Sustainable Volunteer Based Organization: The Putney Food Shelf, Annik Yvette Paul

Capstone Collection

There are many reasons why issues of food insecurity and hunger exist. Individuals, families, and households have various barriers to food security, often facing more than one at a time. Barriers include limited fixed incomes, minimum wage not equaling a livable wage, unemployment and underemployment, poverty, lack of personal transportation and/or access to public transportation, limited access to shopping areas (food deserts), and health and medical issues.

Considering the current statistics listed below, combined with the ever-increasing cost of food, more households will be struggling to meet their basic nutritional needs. Food insecurity and hunger is a problem faced by …

Virginia Brissey, Virginia Brissey, Institute Of Child Nutrition. Child Nutrition Archives.

Oral History Project (all interviews)

A Pennsylvania native, and a Navy veteran, Virginia Brissey worked as a program manager for Kids First in Arkansas.

Dsc Enthalpic Transitions During Starch Gelatinization In Excess Water, Dilute Sodium Chloride, And Dilute Sucrose Solutions, Wajira S. Ratnayake, Chika Otani, David S. Jackson

Department of Food Science and Technology: Faculty Publications

Background: Starch phase transition characteristics were studied by pre-treating starch samples in excess water, dilute sodium chloride and dilute sucrose solutions and subjecting them to differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). Unmodified maize, wheat and potato starches were held at specific temperatures between 30 and 90 °C for 30 min and promptly cooled to 25 °C. Treated samples were then analyzed in situ by DSC. Results: It was found that the progression of the phase transition behavior differed among the three starches and was dependent on the solvent. It was also revealed that phase transition-related enthalpic changes started to occur at low …

San Antonio High School Food Justice Program: A Handbook And Evaluation Of Edible Education, Katherine B. Tenneson

Pitzer Senior Theses

This senior environmental studies thesis explains and analyzes edible education through a food and gardening program at a continuation high school in Claremont, California. The first chapter situates the program-specific analysis by providing background information of the edible education movement, a history of the Edible Schoolyard in Berkeley, California, and an explanation of why food is a powerful teaching tool. The second chapter delineates the program by describing all of its components and compiling essential resources and teaching documents. The third chapter is based on interviews with 9 of 12 involved students and 7 teachers, and thoroughly explains the outcomes …

Cholesterol Lowering Effects Of Milk With Added Phytosterols, Laura Kells Cusack

Master's Theses

Foods incorporating plant sterols (PS) reduce Low-density lipoprotein (LDL) on average approximately 10%. PS with a higher lipid solubility may promote greater reductions. We examined the cholesterol lowering effect of a novel triglyceride recrystallized phystosterol (TRP). Twenty subjects (mean ± SD; age, 56 ± 10 years; BMI, 27 ± 5) with elevated LDL (>100 mg/dL) participated in three 4-week phases; Phase I, 2% milk; Phase II, milk with 2.0 grams (g) free PS; Phase III, milk with 2.0 g TRP. Before and after each phase two fasting blood draws were obtained for determination of serum cholesterol. Between the 2% …

The Effects Of Phytosterols On Lipoprotein Particle Size, Laura J. Kunces

Master's Theses

Phytosterols (PS) have become a recent popular medication alternative for treatment of hypercholesterolemia and have proven effective. Whether PS decrease risk of cardiovascular disease through other mechanisms, such as lipoprotein particle size and inflammatory markers, remains unclear. PURPOSE: The primary aim of this study was to examine the effects of two forms of PS in milk on lipoprotein particle size, inflammatory markers and fat-soluble vitamins. METHODS: Twenty subjects (13 males, 7 females; age; 55±6.1 years, height; 169±10 cm, weight; 77.9±16.9 kg, BMI; 27.3) consumed 16oz of cow’s milk daily for 12 weeks. The three sequential four-week phases consisted of 2% …

Ars Assists In Fight Against Kudzu Bug, Jan Suszkiw, Walker Jones

Agricultural Research Magazine

Sure, this distant relative of the brown marmorated stink bug will feed voraciously on the stems of kudzu, the “Vine That Ate the South.” But Megacopta cribraria also has a taste for soybean and other legumes. In Georgia, where this native of Asia was first discovered in the United States in October 2009, there’s worry that the pest will set its sights on peanut, endangering a $2 billion crop that supplies nearly 50 percent of America’s peanuts (Georgia Peanut Commission, 2009).

Like the brown marmorated stink bug, Megacopta—also known as the “bean plataspid”—seeks shelter inside homes, buildings, and vehicles …

Flow Rate, And More, Ann Perry

Agricultural Research Magazine

At the Agricultural Research Service’s Northwest Irrigation and Soils Research Laboratory in Kimberly, Idaho, agricultural engineer Brad King and research leader Dave Bjorneberg compared how irrigation from four commercial center-pivot sprinklers affected potential runoff and erosion on four south-central Idaho soils.

Though their results were inconsistent, they did observe that at the end of six irrigations, a 50-percent reduction in sprinkler flow rate reduced runoff and soil erosion 60-80 percent. They concluded that reducing sprinkler flow rate early in the growing season—before the development of a crop canopy—could help reduce irrigation runoff and soil erosion linked to center-pivot sprinkler irrigation. …

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150 Years of Making History

USDA's 150th Anniversary- May 15, 2012

Forum: Alternative Strategies For Keeping Animals Healthy, Cyril G. Gay

Agricultural Research Magazine

The general public needs to know more about the importance of preventing and controlling livestock diseases and the financial impact they would have on our lives and food supply if left unchecked. Part of our mission at the USDA Agricultural Research Service is to conduct research to protect the safety of our nation’s agriculture and food supply through improved disease detection, prevention, and control.

Antibiotics are recognized as one of the most important biomedical discoveries for treating infectious diseases of animals and humans. The use of antibiotics has had a major impact on increases in food-animal production and has resulted …